I just got off the phone with my sister. We are so different in many ways, but now that we're older we are good friends.
My sister is extremely afraid of dogs, but she tries very hard to deal with it and get past it. She has been able to get through it with certain dogs after spending time around the certain dog, little by little, but she still can't have the dog all over her. She asks me to bring Moe over to see the kids, and actually wants us to come more regularly. When we do this, Moe is always on a leash, and she will be near by but not closer than 5 or 6 feet. I feel so bad for her because she wants to be comfortable with dogs and even went to some kind of therapist years ago to work on this phobia.
Back to the phone conversation.
Anyway, she, her husband (who loves dogs) and my 3 nieces just got back from camping in Acadia. She told me she had a horribly embarassing episode on a boat ride, some kind of small schooner. Everyone got on the boat and settled in, and then she sees 2 big newfs come on board. So, she got really nervous because they were going to be roaming around the boat. This is a big part of her fear, when a dog is loose and able to come near her. My bil said he'd play with them if they came over and so she tried to calm down and thought she'd be ok. But, when they came near her, and she said that all of the sudden, she felt overwhelmed, and started hyperventilating, shaking, and half-crying. She asked to be let off the boat, but the crew said that if anyone is afraid of dogs, they tie the dogs up. So, then she felt bad because they tied them up and that she basically had a panic attack in front of a whole bunch of people.
So, I'm wondering if anyone out there has had any experience with helping people get over their dog phobias. My sister had a bad experience with a dog as a child. She wasn't bitten, but she was riding a big-wheel-like a tricycle, and chased by a neighborhood dog, back in the day when dogs would be let out without the owner around. Bringing Moe-who is still young-over to her house is obviously not helping much, since she knows how sweet newfies are, and has no problem with her children being around Moe and getting kisses from him. She really really tries, guys, so any ideas or input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks
Sarah
My sister is extremely afraid of dogs, but she tries very hard to deal with it and get past it. She has been able to get through it with certain dogs after spending time around the certain dog, little by little, but she still can't have the dog all over her. She asks me to bring Moe over to see the kids, and actually wants us to come more regularly. When we do this, Moe is always on a leash, and she will be near by but not closer than 5 or 6 feet. I feel so bad for her because she wants to be comfortable with dogs and even went to some kind of therapist years ago to work on this phobia.
Back to the phone conversation.
Anyway, she, her husband (who loves dogs) and my 3 nieces just got back from camping in Acadia. She told me she had a horribly embarassing episode on a boat ride, some kind of small schooner. Everyone got on the boat and settled in, and then she sees 2 big newfs come on board. So, she got really nervous because they were going to be roaming around the boat. This is a big part of her fear, when a dog is loose and able to come near her. My bil said he'd play with them if they came over and so she tried to calm down and thought she'd be ok. But, when they came near her, and she said that all of the sudden, she felt overwhelmed, and started hyperventilating, shaking, and half-crying. She asked to be let off the boat, but the crew said that if anyone is afraid of dogs, they tie the dogs up. So, then she felt bad because they tied them up and that she basically had a panic attack in front of a whole bunch of people.
So, I'm wondering if anyone out there has had any experience with helping people get over their dog phobias. My sister had a bad experience with a dog as a child. She wasn't bitten, but she was riding a big-wheel-like a tricycle, and chased by a neighborhood dog, back in the day when dogs would be let out without the owner around. Bringing Moe-who is still young-over to her house is obviously not helping much, since she knows how sweet newfies are, and has no problem with her children being around Moe and getting kisses from him. She really really tries, guys, so any ideas or input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks
Sarah